Healthy Teeth Kids Activity

Poor oral health can reduce your quality of life by impacting your physical, mental and social well-being. Oral pain, missing teeth and infections can impact speech, ability to eat, socializing and even your ability to get and keep a job. In children, this can translate into poor school performance, social problems, and being less successful later in life.

Regular dentist appointments are the best way to detect oral health problems you may not even know you have and prevent other problems before they even start. Most dental diseases, including tooth decay, are easier to treat and cost less time, pain and money if detected early.

We all want the best for families and high on your list of priorities should be instilling good oral health habits. You can do this by setting a good example for your children by taking the time to brush and floss your teeth, eating healthy food, and keeping up with regular dentist appointments.

Kids tend to learn through play, so I’ve created a fun Healthy Teeth Kids Activity to help your family get into the spirit of Oral Health Month and to “Make Your Teeth a Big Deal”!

To get started download and print the Healthy Teeth Kids Activity Printable. Have your children colour in the two sheets, then cut along the lines and shuffle the “cards”. Next, using the two teeth sheets, have your children sort out the food according to which foods will make their teeth “happy and healthy” and which ones are bad for their teeth.

My kids (2 and 4 years old) really loved this activity when I tested it out with them, and since playing the sorting game, they have become interested in knowing which food is good for their oral health and which foods are not. They’ve also become extra interested in running up to the bathroom after eating, especially if they’ve had a special treat, to brush their teeth.

There are other fun activity possibilities with these sheets when your child is done with sorting. Try printing a second copy of the food sheets and play a game of match. Grab some cotton balls and glue them down over the teeth sheets for fun, healthy tooth craft for kids.

Now that you’ve started the conversation with your family, isn’t it time you saw your dentist? Call your dentist to make an appointment now. Don’t have a dentist? Find one now!

Disclosure: Although this post has been generously sponsored by The Ontario Dental Association, the opinions and language are my own.